8 Comments
User's avatar
Patty Dann's avatar

Wow! What a fascinating story - I had no idea!

Expand full comment
Richard Goodman's avatar

Pretty crazy, right?

Expand full comment
Patty Dann's avatar

maybe that's what we should do!

Expand full comment
tom messner's avatar

In high school, I read "Axel and Rimbaud." Trying to remember why and what it was. And who wrote it. Maybe Edmund Wilson or Mary McCarthy.

Expand full comment
Richard Goodman's avatar

I would say probably Wilson, who wrote "Axel's Castle."

Expand full comment
Louella Bryant's avatar

Well rendered, Richard. I've always thought Bob Dylan is the reincarnation of Rimbaud. Some of their lines are inscrutable. Dylan wrote about a “gray-flannel dwarf.” And what are “four-legged forest clouds”? And “They shaved her head/She was torn between Jupiter and Apollo.” Whereas Rimbaud's poetry was fueled by absinthe, Dylan dabbled in his own provocative elixirs. I wonder if it was worth the price they paid. For Rimbaud, a short life with a touch of insanity; for Dylan, a Nobel he didn't want.

Expand full comment
Richard Goodman's avatar

Thanks, Ellie. So many writers have fallen under his spell. A chapter of "Just Kids" by Patti Smith, is devoted to a trip she took to Rimbaud's home town, Charleville. Even Henry Miller wrote a book about Rimbaud!

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
Jul 21, 2022
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Richard Goodman's avatar

Hey Ken,

I'm glad you liked the piece. As for a cup of coffee with AR, hmmm. Not so sure about that! Richard

Expand full comment